Molding device



F. F. MOREHEAD MOLDING DEVICE June 18, 1946.

Filed March 25, 1943 INVENTOR. y

ATTORNEY.

estema sus@ Aia rees asians HOLDING DEVICE Frederick F. Morehead, West Skeeter, Pa., as-

signor to American Viscose Oorporatlon,l Wilmnzton, Dei., a. corporation of Delaware Application March 25, 1943, Serial No. dwl

This invention relates to a molding device, particularly adapted to embed within a single mass a plurality of distinctly separated flexible strands. each of which may be constituted of a single fiber, filament, thread or wire, or of a twisted or untwisted bundle of fibers; filaments. threads or wires, examples of the latter being spun'yarns or continuous filament yarns. The invention is 9 calms. (ci. is-osr especially applicable to the embedding of natural or articial filaments or.staple bers within a, suitable wax preparatoryv to `cutting thin crosssections with a microtome. i

It ls an object of this invention to provide a device which is adapted to facilitate the arrangement of the individual strands in a reasonably regular fashionso that they can be readily identied in the cross-section made from the molded product. A further object is to provide a tensioning device in which an entire row comprising a plurality of strands may be clamped as a unit in simple manner. A further object is to 'provide a clamp of compact form which is adapted to secure a plurality of rows of strands, the rows being clamped separately and in succession without releasing the previously clamped rows. A further object is to provide a device for temporarily and releasably vholding a plurality of strands in readiness for clamping by the tensioning device and the clamping device; Further objects and advantages of the invention will, be apparent from the drawing and the description thereof hereinafter.

In the drawing, illustrative of the invention,

Figure i is a perspective view of the entire device as viewed from above,

Figures 2. 3 and Il are perspective views showing parts of the molding box, 1

Figure 5 shows an endview of the device, illusl trating one of the temporary clamps,

, of cross-section and the arrangement or the strands within it obtained when using the end walls shown in Figure 16, and v Figure l2 is a perspective view showing ari-` otner modified form of slotted end Wall.

` is shown in Figure i, the molding device comprises a suitable longitudinal base to which dll A rod.

are secured side pieces Swhich, together with the corner'posts t secured to the base serve as legs lto support the base. yA temporary clamp E is provided at each end of the base 2 and is supported by the corresponding pair of the corner posts t. The temporary clamp 5 (see Figure 5) comprises a rod t carrying a plurality of washers 'i whichV are free to rotate with respect to the Al collar t secured to the rod, as oy a set screw, serves to adjustably limit the motion of the washers to the left as viewed in Figure 5. -A

helical spring 5 surrounding the rod is inserted between one of the posts e and the end washer facing it and presses the washers together. Preferably, the washers are highly polished and have rounded edges.

Adjacent the temporary clamp 5 at the left of I Figure l; there is disposed a permanent clamp i@ (see Figure Si which comprises a xed base il secured to the longitudinal base Z'and four threaded posts l2 which extend upwardly from the base. Each post is provided with a knurled thumb nut is which has a depending sleeve it. Clamp bars i5 and is, shown in Figures 7 and 8, are laid upon successive rows of strands. The effective surface of these bars may be scored as at it and it to assist the clamping action. The clamp bar i5 of Figure 7 has four'slots, the two il at the inside being large enough to permit the entry oi the sleeves iii of the inner thumb nuts and the outer two l@ being only large enough to permit entry of the posts it. The clamp bar de of Figure -8 has four slots of which the two outer ones i9 are large enough to permit the entry of the sleeves of the thumb nuts on the outer posts and the inner two 2li are only large enough to permit entry of posts i2. This Y construction permits/the clampingf a row of strands without releasing the previously clamped row. For example, the row oi strands shown in Figure l are clamped by the top clamp bar it which is heldby the inner two thumb nuts i3.

y The next row of strands may be clamped on top of the clamp bar i8 shown in Figure 1 by means oi a bar oi the type it shown in Figure 7 where' the inner two slots il will pass over the sleeves of the inner two thumb nuts, aiter which the two outer thumb nuts may be screwed down to tighten the clamp bar. Thereafter the two inner nuts may be loosened without releasing the previously clamped row of strands and the process may be carried out to any number of successively applied rows of strands merely by alternating the clamp bar lil of Figure '7 with that i6 of Figure 8. v

the bottom of the molding box. The grooves 26 aeoaaae formed between the side platforms 25 and the -central platform 23 are adapted to receive the tween the end platforms 24 and the central platform 23 and between the opposite faces of the sidewalls 21 of the molding box. `The form of end block shown in Figures 1 and 4 is provided with five slots 29 adapted to receive and separate the strands in horizontal rows. As sh'own in Figure 1,- separator plates 33 may be used to separate successive rows of strands, the first pair of separator plates being shown in position on the two end platforms 24over the iirst row of filaments. Each row may thus be separated by any desired distance which is controlled by the thickness of the separator plates 30 used.

Th'e two side walls 3 support a plurality of tension clamps 3| which are freely rotatable in the walls 3. The tension clamp 3| second from the left in Figure 1 is shown in use for tensioning the first row of filaments, the first tension clamp 3| at the left of Figure 1 being shown dismantled. Referring to Figures 1 and 9, the tension clamp 3| comprises a rod' 32 rotatably supported within the sidewalls 3 and provided at one end with a th'readed post 33 for carrying an adjustable weight 34. The rod 32 is split at its center to form a saddle or seat 35 within which the clamping bar 33 is adapted .to fit. The effective clamping surface of the bar 35 may be scored. as at 33'. At each side of the split portion, there is provided a slidable collar 31 whoseinternal surface constitutes a portion of' a cone, the wider opening being toward the center of the clamp. AThe rod 32 is slightly tapered adjacent the end of the seat portion 35 and similarly the clamping bar 33 may be tapered for a short distance adjacent/its ends so that the sliding of the collars 31 inwardly after disposing the strands on the seat 35 under theA clamping bar 36 causes effective gripping.

Briefly, the charging of the molding device is accomplished as follows: `The side wa1ls,21 and slotted end walls 28 of the molding box are set in their proper places on the support 22 and the first row of strands are separately inserted between the washers 1 at the left of Figure 1. through corresponding slots 29 of each of the molding box ends 28 and between the washers 1 on the temporary clamp at the other end of the device. After as many strands as are desired in a row are charged by placing each strand in a separate slot in each end wall of the molding box, the washers 1 of one of .the temporary clamps may be rotated to equalize the tension on the strands. Th'en an appropriate clamping bar I or I6 may be laid upon the base of the permanent clamp shown at the left of Figure l. Thereafter, one of the tension clamps 3| is swung counterclockwise into the position shown at the extreme left of these clamps, in Figure 1, the collars 31 of the tension clamp are spread, the corresponding `clamping bar 33 is removed and placed over the strands in the saddle or lseat 35. and the collars are then slipped inwardly to clamp the bar 36 against the seat 35 tightly. Thereafter, the tension clamp is rotated clockwise from the charging position to the position in which the clamp 3| second from the left in Figure 1 is sh'own where the weight 34 is exerting tension upon the filaments. Thereupon, the appropriate thumb nuts i3 are tightened to secure the tension bar I5 or I 6 of the permanent clamp I0 in place. The ends of the strands extending from the clamp 3| and clamp I0 to the corresponding temporary clamps 5 are severed and removed from the temporary clamps.

A separator plate 30 is 'then placed upon the filaments over each' end platform 24 of the molding box support 22 and a second row of strands is disposed within the temporary clamps 5 and the slotted end blocks 28 of the molding box, clamped in another tensioning clamp 3| and in the permanent clamp I0. using that one of the types of permanent clamp bars i5 and I8 which can ,be inserted over the sleeves I4 of the nuts I3 holding the previously applied row or rows of strands. In this manner any number of rows may be piled one above the other within the limits of the de- VICE.'

After the charging of the device, the molding .may proceed. Any molten wax or other molding medium may be poured into the box 2|.

While the limits of the device as shown in Figure 1 prevent the disposition of more than ten rows one above the other because of the fact that only ten tensioning clamps 3| are provided at the right of the molding box 2|, yet itis obvious that any such number of clamps may be so arranged.` The slotted end blocks 28 of the molding box proper are, of course, interchangeable and end blocks having any desired number of slots 23 may be used. Similarly, any number of washers 1 may be provided upon the temporary clamps 5, eleven being shown to take care of the maximum of ten corresponding to the limit of the number of tensioning clamps 3| provided in Figure 1.

Figure 10'shows a modification of slotted end block 23' in which ten slots 23' are-divided in two groups of five each by a central partitioning wall 38 of considerable thickness as compared to those between the individual slots within each group of ve. By combining the use of such a slotted end block with the use of an extra thick separator 30 between the fifth and sixth horizontal` rows upon the end platforms 24 of the molding box support (or by the use of a plurality of thin separators 30) the arrangement of strands obtained in the final cross-section would appear as shown in Figure 11. The identity of each of the strands Awithin the nal unitary block may be readily ascertained by a simple form of chart conveniently filled out as the molding device is charged and the location of any particular strand within the plurality may be facilitated by the use of one or more reference strands of peculiar and readily observed character.

A modified form of block 28" shown in Figure 12 is particularly useful where only relatively short lengths of the material are available. For

example, it may be desired to embed samples of staple fiber products or a short sample of yarn. Such samples may be used by tying to the ends of the short sample suitable lengths of other strand material. The distance between the knots at opposite ends of the sample is preferably selected so that the knots fall within the transverse escasas central platforms Il may be used in cooperation with slotted end blocks 28 having correspondingly greater or less lengths. Such a modification may particularly und advantage when used with the having extremely short lengths.

'rs' t1 preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, itis to be understo that changes and variations may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended 5121"; v

.What l claim is:

l. In combination, a support, an enclosure on the support having opposed walls each having a plurality of corresponding transverse slots therethrough, a platform adjacent the slots in each of the opposed walls, temporary strand clamping means spaced vfrom each of the platforms for holding a plurality of strands extending through theslots under tension, and'permanent clamping means between each platform and the corresponding temporary clamping means, the permanent clamping means being arranged to hold a plurality,r of strands in a `plurality of distinct rows.

'2. In combination, a support, an enclosure on the support having opposed walls each having a plurality o corresponding transverse slots therethrough, a. platform adjacent the slots in each 'of the opposed walls, temporary strand clamping means spaced from each of the platforms for holding a plurality of strands extending through ,y the slots under tension, permanent clamping means between each platform and the corresponding temporary clamping means, the permanent clamping means being arranged to hold a plurality of trends in a plurality of distinct rows.

vand adjustable tensioning means associated with the perma* ent clamping means.

3. In co1..bination, a support, an enclosure on the support having opposed walls each having a plurality of corresponding transverse slots therethrough, a platform adjacent the slots in each oi the opposed walls, temporary strand clamping meansspaced from each of the platforms for holding in substantially regular arrangement a plurality of strands extending through the slots under tension, permanent clamping means between each platform and the corresponding temporary clamping means, the permanent clamping means being arranged to hold -a plurality of strands in a plurality of distinct rows, and adinstable tensioning means associated with the permanent clamping means.

4. In combination, a support, an enclosure on the support having opposed'walls each having a plurality of corresponding transverse slots, a

platform adjacent the slots in each of the opposed walls, temporary strand clamping means spaced from each of the platforms for holding a plurality of strands extending through the slots under tension, said temporary clamping means comprising at least three separable members arranged face to f ace and resilient means for pressing them together.

5. In combination, a support, an enclosure on the support having' opposed walls each having a plurality of .corresponding transverse slots, a platform adjacent the slots in each'of the opposed walls, temporary strand clamping means spaced from each of the platforms for holding a plurality of strands extending through the slots under tension, permanent 'clamping meam between sides of the cut-away portion and a clamp bar I adapted to ilt in the seat.

6. In combination, a support, an enclosure on the support having opposed walls each having a plurality of corresponding transverse slots, a platform adjacent the slots in each of the opposed walls, temporary strand clamping means spaced from each of the platforms for holding a plurality of strands extending through the slots under tension, permanent clamping meansv between each platform and the corresponding temporary clamping means, said permanent clamping means comprising a rotatably mounted rod having a portion of its length cut away to orm a seat, a pair of collars disposed on the rod on opposite sides oi the cut-away portion and a clamp bar adaptedl to fit in the seat, the rod being tapered down from each en d of the seat, and the collars having an internal gripping surface of frusto. conical shape adapted to cooperate with the tapered ends of the rod.

7. In combination, a support, an enclosure on the support having opposed rwalls each having a 'plurality of corresponding transverse slots therethrough, a platform adjacent the slots in each o the opposed walls, temporary strand clamping means spaced from each of the platforms for holding a plurality of strands extending through the slots under tension, permanent clampingmeans between each platform and corresponding temporary clamping means, said permanent clamping means comprising a base, a plurality of threaded posts secured in the base, nuts on the postvprovided with sleeves arranged to extend toward the base, two sets of clamp bars provided with a plurality of lateral slots corresponding in disposition to the threaded posts, at least one of the slots being large enough to permit free entry of a sleeve and at least one other of the slots being large enough to permit free entry of a threaded post but lnsufilciently large to permit entry ofa sleeve, the large slots of one set of clamp bars being disposed where the smaller slots of the ,otherset are disposed.

B. A thread clamping means comprising a base, l

entry of a sleeve, the large slots of one set of clamp bars being disposed where the smaller slots 'of the'other set are disposed. 'i

9. In combination, a support, an enclosure on the support having opposed walls each having a plurality of corresponding transverse slots therethrough, a platform adjacent the slots in each of the opposed walls, temporary strand clamping means spaced from each of the platform for vholding a plurality of strands extending through the slots under tension, permanent clamping means between each platform and a correspondving temporary clamping means, that portion'of the permanent clamping means arranged between one platform and the corresponding temporary clamping means .comprising a rotatably sleeves to extend toward the base, two sets o! 10 8 clamp, bars provided with a plurality of lateral slots corresponding in disposition to the threaded posts, atleast one ot the slots being large enough to permit free entry of a sleeve and at least one other of the slots being large enough to permit free entry of a. threaded post but insumciently large'to permit entry of a sleeve, the large slots of one set of clamp bars being disposed where the smaller slots o! the other set are disposed. FREDERICK F. MOREHEAD. 

